Foleshill murder trial: Accused says wife left him when his UK visa was extended

Salma Parveen's body was found at her home in Awson Street, Foleshill.

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A man accused of murdering his wife during a row in their Coventry home has told a court he “respected and supported” her.

Mohammed Iqbal, 29, took the witness stand to deny claims he was violent towards Salma Parveen, 22, before her death in April last year.

He said he regularly gave her money and was not pressurising her to marry him in a civil ceremony.

At Stafford Crown Court, Iqbal, who denies a charge of murder, said the relationship between them changed after he was granted an extension to his visa to stay in the UK and that he wasn't going to be forced to return to Pakistan.

Iqbal said: “She was sitting beside me and I showed her the passport.

“She just went quiet. She told her parents the next day and after that she went to stay with her parents.

“She was not talking to me. She said to me 'You are a student and you married me to deceive me'.

“I said everyone knew I was a student - what happened?”

Iqbal told the court that after they were married in an Islamic ceremony in July 2012 the couple moved to Awson Street in Foleshill.

He said that in around nine months of marriage the couple had sex four times.

After the dispute over the visa in September Miss Parveen moved out.

In October Iqbal was robbed in a Foleshill park and shortly after then he also left the area.

He eventually moved to Luton, not returning to Awson Street until the following March.

Iqbal’s barrister Joseph Giret QC asked him if he had used prostitutes or drank alcohol during his time in Luton.

Iqbal denied both accusations.

He blamed Miss Parveen and her family for the breakdown of the relationship.

“They were insulting me a lot,” he said. “They called me pimp, dodgy, fraudster. I had enough so I went away.”

Later in evidence he said: “I thought they said go away. In my opinion the marriage was over.”

The court heard that Miss Parveen booked a civil ceremony for June on April 8. She cancelled it on April 23, six days before her death.

Iqbal said he only became ware that it had been cancelled during the court proceedings after Miss Parveen had died.

He also said he only found out about his wife’s relationship with Labour councillor Kamran Caan during the legal process.

Mr Giret QC asked: “Were you aware she had been staying in hotels?”

Iqbal said: “No, I was trusting her a lot.

Mr Giret responded: “Did you know your wife had been using medication to prevent pregnancy?”